'Elvis & Nixon': New trailer for movie about the day the King met the president

President Nixon's meeting with Elvis Presley on Dec. 21, 1970, at the White House, is the inspiration for the forthcoming film "Elvis & Nixon." The image is the most requested among millions of images stores in the National Archive. (National Archives / Getty Images)

The story behind a photo in the National Archives might not sound initially like the greatest fodder for a feature film, but when the picture in question shows the unlikely meeting in 1970 between President Nixon and Elvis Presley at the White House, suddenly the idea sounds a lot more intriguing.

It was Dec. 21, 1970, and the snapshot of Nixon and Presley is the most-requested image among millions stored in the National Archive. That inspired Amazon Studios and Bleecker Street Media (“Trumbo”) to collaborate on “Elvis & Nixon” and to delve into just how that surreal meeting came about.

In the just-released trailer, which can be seen here, Kevin Spacey plays Nixon and Michael Shannon is the king of rock 'n' roll. The latter visits Washington, D.C., not just to get face time with the chief executive but also to seek a federal law enforcement badge so he can join efforts against rising drug use in the country at the time.

The trailer suggests that the film is taking a light-hearted approach to the subject, and that it's trading on Presley’s well-documented love of handguns of various styles and caliber.

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FOR THE RECORD

An earlier version of this post listed the opening day for "Elvis & Nixon" as April 15. The film is slated to premiere in April, but a date has not been confirmed.